Leaven

Volume 4 Issue 4 Job Article 9

1-1-1996

God on Trial (Job 1.1-2.6)

Ronnie Norman

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Recommended Citation Norman, Ronnie (2012) " on Trial (Job 1.1-2.6)," Leaven: Vol. 4 : Iss. 4 , Article 9. Available at: https://digitalcommons.pepperdine.edu/leaven/vol4/iss4/9

This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Religion at Pepperdine Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Leaven by an authorized editor of Pepperdine Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]. Norman: God on Trial (Job 1.1-2.6)

28 Leaven. Fall. 1996

On Trial (Job 1:1- 2(/

By Ronnie Norman

David McKenna, in The Whisper of His Grace, says tragedy that snuffs out the life of someone much too dear there are three questions every one of us will ask at some to die. It may take the form of a financial setback that leaves point in our lives: Why me? Why this? Why now? How do us working harder for less money. Or it may be an illness we handle it when life hands us something we did not ex- that leaves us a shell of what we once were. It may be the pect and do not want? How do we cope with and manage realization that our lifelong vocational dreams just won't life's disappointments? From time to time, when I meet happen. someone who has been deeply disappointed in life, I won- For some, it is the daily grind of a difficult life that eats der what his or her future holds, don't you? When I see away at our optimism. We're struggling day after bone- someone grieving the loss of a relationship, or lamenting tiring day just to keep our heads above water. Our mar- the loss of a dream, I wonder what the future holds for such riages are so-so and our jobs are monotonous. We never a person. Will he turn into a bitter, cynical person, seething dreamed life would be so routine, so tiring, so relentless. with anger towards God and the church? Or, will he be a How should we respond when we do not experience what person whose losses become part of his witness for God? we expected from God? Did we expect too much from God? Will she, by God's grace, once again embrace life with op- Or has God let us down? timism and spiritual passion? Or will she choose to curse All of us have tasted the bitterness of disappointment. God and quit? Disappointment is universal. It occurs when our experiences To some degree, the answer usually hinges on our the- don't measure up to our expectations. Ask the wife whose ology of disappointment. All of us bring to our relation- husband of twenty-seven years left her for a younger ships with God certain hopes, dreams, and expectations. woman. Check with the executive whose company We pray about these important matters and ask God to bless downsized and left him jobless eighteen months shy of re- them. We ask for his blessings over our jobs, our marriages, tirement. Interview the young couple whose friends are our children's happiness, our parents' health, our boss' atti- buying cribs, while they keep on seeing the fertility spe- tude, and our car's transmission. But sometimes, to borrow cialist. Meet with the minister whose dreams to build a a phrase from Gordon MacDonald, we all face a "broken healthy, vibrant, fresh church have been slammed on the world experience." It may come through a moral lapse of rocks of traditionalism. our own where the consequences linger long after the re- The story of Job is the story of a man's deepening rela- pentance. It may come through the relational breakdown tionship with God. The adversities and disappointments that of a marriage or the rebellion of a child. It may be a sudden came Job's way forced him to discard his simplistic "do

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Job 29

good and get good; do bad and get bad" cause-and-effect earth like him; he is blameless and upright; a man who fears theology of life. The first two chapters of Job are integral God and shuns evil (1:8)." He testifies of Job's fidelity and to the story as they set the stage for the heavenly wager refers to him as "my servant Job." The story line allows us between God and Satan, making us privy to inside infor- to sense God's favor upon Job. The Lord is Job's ally, stand- mation that Job himself does not know. Unknown to him, ing unashamedly in his comer. The Lord boasts of Job's Job himself is the central character in a heavenly test of fidelity, confidently referring to him as "my servant Job." character and . Satan accuses Job of loving God only because of the good gifts he provides. According to Satan, Job's Adversary (1:6-12; 2:1-6) remove the gifts and Job's faith will erode as well. Will Job Few statements are as insulting to the credibility of a love God in the bad times as well as the good times? Would relationship as "I feel used." No one wants a relationship Job trust God amidst the crumbling ruins of his life? Does with ulterior or superficial motives, but that is precisely the Job live his faith, or does Job use his faith to secure good slander that Satan hurls against Job. He insinuates that Job gifts from God? What is Job's core treasure: his comfort- worships God only because of God's good gifts and that he able life or his relationship with God? These questions form is simply kissing the hand that prospers him. Satan ques- the plot for the book and are the basis for the heavenly wager. tions the quality of Job's love for God and wonders aloud if his righteousness will stand the hostile test of adversity. Job's Assets (1:1-5) Satan's taunting question,"Is Job good for nothing?" The opening statements of the book of Job introduce is the foundational question of the entire story. Betting that us to Job as a complete man of impeccable integrity. He is Job uses God more than he loves God, Satan is permitted not perfect, but he is authentic in his walk with God. to test the purity of Job's faith. And though there are a myriad Job strikes us as one who "has it all." His family is of reasons why difficulties come into the lives of God's happy and sizable. His business is thriving. His name is people, the fundamental reason Job suffers is to suppress respected. His estate is vast and his wealth immense, par- the blasphemous allegations of Satan and prove that a per- ticularly as a man in an eastern culture in which wealth was son will esteem God even in the face of severe loss. measured by land, servants, and animals. He has 7,000 The story of Job reminds us that Satan is a strong, slan- sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, 500 female don- dering, scheming, strategist who plays to win. If we are keys, and many servants. Job is described as "the greatest believers, he aims to make our faith benign, our influence man in all the east." While abundance breeds arrogance weak, and our spiritual passion dull. He wants us to be salt- and spiritual amnesia, that is not the case with Job. He passes less salt and thorny soil, so detoured by the adversities of with flying colors the spiritual test of prosperity, as indi- this life that we seldom produce spiritual fruit. cated in Job I: I: "Job was blameless and upright; he feared The good news is that Satan is limited in his scope and God and shunned evil." intensity of attack. He is not God's equal, and he operates under God's sovereignty within set boundaries. He is a devil Job's Ally (1:6-12; 2:1-6) on a chain, but he is a formidable adversary. Take a deep At I :6, the curtain of invisibility is removed, and we breath and read what Satan does to Job. It is not pretty read- are allowed to peer into the realm of the heavenlies. Job mg. knows nothing of this scene, and it is centrally important to the story that Job has no knowledge of it. But we, the read- Job's Adversity (1:13-19) ers, are given a backstage pass into the heavenly scene. Meanwhile, back on earth, Job is enjoying his righ- In this realm we get a majestic view of God seated upon teous and prosperous life when suddenly, disaster strikes in his throne, granting an audience to the approaching angels. dramatic form. Job becomes another of God's suffering Among the parading angels is Satan, having returned from servants. Satan's ability to be involved in the affairs of men, a mission of roaming throughout the earth. The conversa- to influence people, weather, and armies, shocks us. tion between God and Satan quickly focuses on Job's righ- In a matter of hours, Job loses it all, experiencing more teous and blameless character. The Lord boasts to Satan, trauma than most of us can envision in a lifetime. First, "Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on attacking Sabaens and Chaldaens raid his estate, steal his

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belongings, and slaughter his servants. Second, a lightning strike destroys even more livestock and kills additional ser- Job's Allegiance (1:20-21) vants. Third, a whirlwind levels the house in which Job's We are concerned about Job. His trials are not imagi- ten children are sharing a meal. There are no survivors. nary. He's not some hysterical whiner with imaginary woes. Job quickly becomes too well acquainted with grief. His losses are severe and his grief legitimate. Grief is something we feel when we lose something pre- God allows Satan to attack Job's family, estate, wealth, cious. It could be a home, a job, our sense of control, or a and health in order to reveal Job's treasure. God allows Satan life's dream. One divorced woman told me that she didn't to mine for Job's gold. God permits Satan to discern where miss her ex-husband's adulteries and drunken rages at all. Job's treasure lies. On trial here is the quality and signifi- Yet her divorce still created deep emotional trauma because cance of God's relationship with Job. How will Job respond it represented the loss of her dreams. She had never ex- to a whirlwind of disappointment? How will Job manage pected the experiences that came her way. his losses? Will he curse God and die? How much is God Job's loss of his life's work is staggering enough, but himself worth to Job? the added grief of losing all ten of his children is an emo- Job passes round one of this cosmic character test with tional blow that almost seems unbearable. If someone dies flying colors. Even after his world is shattered, Job responds slowly, at least there is an opportunity to express love and with worship, blessing, and faith. Job's response in 1:20- say goodbye. But when a sudden death occurs, we feel dou- 21 is an inspiring, exhilarating passage of scripture: "At bly cheated when the goodbyes are left unsaid. this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then Job knows what happened, but he does not know why. he fell to the ground in worship and said: 'Naked I came He is learning that he may have misunderstood the ground from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord rules of his relationship with God. His righteous life is not gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the insulating him from hardship. In fact, if he knew the whole Lord be praised. ", story he would know that his righteous life precipitated these Job's perseverance in the early stages of his test is a hardships. Like Job, we will also be targeted by the evil precursor to the rest of the story. Say what you will about one in his attempts to erode our confidence and unsettle Job-he certainly asks his share of questions and does his our faith. If we are going to navigate safely through life's share of self-justifying-but he doesn't give up. He does difficulties, we must expect them. Anticipating adversity is not douse his hope even when answers are slow or absent. half the battle; otherwise, we'll be disillusioned and won- He tastes disappointment and lives in a broken world, but der why God has disappointed us. Being a Christian does does not quit. not exempt us from difficulty. We may still get cancer, our parents may have Alzheimer's, we may endure unfair criti- Four Observations: cism as a result of our ministries, or our mates may walk 1. When God allows us to be tested, even those com- away. And the purposes for such disappointments are not modities that are most precious to us may be touched. I always easily discernible. read the first chapter of Job with deep anguish because Ifwe are committed to God's kingdom, Satan will hurl people lose their lives, among them all ten of Job's chil- his arrows at us. Satan hates what God loves. And for an dren. Each child was a prize in Job's heart. He loved them era of time, God allows Satan to harass and attack us. The all and shared special memories with each one. Itjust doesn't Lord exhorted the church in Smyrna with these words: "Do seem right that ten young people should die and lose their not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the futures as a result of Satan's test. But God has allowed Sa- devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you tan to mine the heart of Job in search of his core treasure, will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the even if that means touching his children to determine Job's point of death, and I will give you a crown of life" (Revela- spiritual fiber. tion 2: 10). God may allow this testing for the purification For a period of time, the evil one is permitted to walk of our faith, or as a stage on which our faith is showcased, the earth, exert some degree of power, and attack God's or for reasons unknown to us. people through an arsenal of deceptive weapons. As he

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Job 31

searches for our points of vulnerability, the tests will be He emphasized that even his brother's sickbed became a painful-c-or they wouldn't be legitimate tests. platform from which he brought glory to the name of the When Satan is allowed to test us, he does so only with Lord. God's permission, and God uses it for his glory. Nothing Like Job, this man's core treasure was his relationship comes into the life of a believer that is beyond God's knowl- with God. When the peripheral gifts such as health and com- edge and permission. Nothing comes our way that surprises fort were gone, this man still held tightly to the Giver of God and that is beyond his ability to harness for his glory. life eternal. And in a world full of superficial faith, that God will not allow the devil to test us beyond our ability to kind of authenticity gains an audience among those with bear, though at times it may seem painfully so. ears to hear. 2. Events that are seen must be understood in light of 4. At issue during any hardship is the fundamental im- realities that are unseen. Job didn't even consider Satan's portance of our spiritual covenant with God. If we are more involvement or the influences of the unseen world. It all overwhelmed by our pain than by our sin, then we will have seemed so natural, so matter-of-fact to him. The culprits a demanding spirit before God. If we prioritize material were the Sabaens, the Chaldeans, a freakish lightning strike, and emotional health over spiritual health, we will be ex- and a tornado. pecting God to demonstrate his love for us primarily in It would have been so much easier for Job if he had material ways. We will await him to fix our loneliness, heal known the behind-the-scenes conversations between God our bodies, increase our salaries, or give us children. But if and Satan. Had he known he was the central figure in this we are more overwhelmed by our sin than our pain, we cosmic test, had he known his importance, had he known will worship God for his cleansing grace. these purposes behind it all, perhaps he could have man- Satan wagers that we're walking more by sight than aged his losses with greater confidence. Instead, his life faith, that we focus more on our pain than our sin. He bets was shattered out of the seemingly blue sky, without warn- that we're more concerned over our inconveniences than ing and without context. our impurities. He thinks our righteousness cannot stand Like Job, we are known and discussed in the spiritual the test of adversity. He was wrong about Job. Is he wrong world of the unseen. Our foes are not flesh and blood, but about us? evil forces in the heavenly realms. Our weapons are not material in nature, but spiritual. From our box seats as read- Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls ers of Job, God reminds us of an unseen world of divine around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. purposes about which we know only a part. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know 3. Every adversity in life positions us to know God and that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing glorify God in new and unique ways. Our particular experi- the same kind of sufferings. And the God of all grace, who ences in life uniquely shape us to be used by God for his called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have eternal glory. Job's unparalleled abundance and subsequent suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make loss of that abundance uniquely positioned him to glorify you strong, firm and steadfast. To him be the power for God in an extraordinary way. ever and ever. Amen. I recently attended a funeral for a thirty-nine-year-old IPeter 5:8-1 I doctor, whose bone cancer was discovered only eight months before his death. I watched his wife and six chil- dren sing and express grace. I listened to the deceased man's brother eulogize him as a witness for Christ. He affirmed his brother's ambassadorship for Christ as a son, student, RONNIENORMANpreaches for the First Colony Church athlete, husband, father, Christian, doctor, and as a patient. of Christ, Sugar Land, Texas.

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